re CAP: a 90th BIRTHDAY celebration

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Note: This post is photo heavy!

 

This weekend we celebrated my grandfather’s 90^th birthday. Grandmommie planned a fabulous surprise party for her husband of 61 years in a pretty hotel far from the Strip in Vegas. A party room in the JW Marriott was set in black and gold for over 30 guests, paying homage to my Papa’s fraternity affiliation. My mother got memento menus printed with a photo of my grandfather in his youth and each setting circled around the sepia print.

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After surprising the birthday boy, tiny canapés like mini beef wellingtons and salmon topped crackers were passed, wines were poured and beers were cracked open. Seated at four polished tables, we ate four delicate courses— a salty crab cake resting on a creamy sweet slaw chunky with mangoes; a fresh wedge of crisp iceberg drizzled with dressing, blue cheese, diced red onions and tomatoes and crunchy bacon; a choice of salmon with parsnip puree and tomato jam or tender pork loin with Sambuca chutney, apples and braised pork belly; followed by a dessert trio including a vanilla mousse with berry compote, a tangy lemon tart, and decadent chocolate topped with peanut brittle.

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Friends and family shared stories and laughs and tears about Papa, celebrating his many decades of service to his community as an urologist and a father figure to his relatives. And of course, there was birthday cake. As Julia Child said: “A party without cake is just a meeting.”

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Happy 90^th Birthday, Papa! We wish you many more!

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